Tending to the wounded
by Marvech98
Summary: Leon and Ashley seek refuge in a deserted room in the castle where they think they're safe to rest. Unfortunately, in the blink of an eye, everything goes wrong and Ashley will need face her own fears to save her bodyguard's life. Oneshot. Also available in French.


_Hello there everybody! This is a simple oneshot and my first Resident Evil story. As you might have guessed, it takes place during the Castle portion of the game Resident Evil 4. Before we get to it I want to inform you of a couple things._

_First of all, please take in consideration the fact that English is not my first language (that being French) so it is fairly possible that you may spot mistakes or odd sentences. If you would, I would be most grateful if you could point them out to me so I could fix them and improve my English writing skills. _

_Second of all, myself being French Canadian, this story was originally written in French and then translated (by myself). The original French version of this fanfic is also available here so if you'd rather read the original text, you can easily access it. _

_As you can see, this fanfiction focuses on the relashionship between Leon and Ashley in RE4. This is not a romance story as I personnaly see them having more of a big brother little sister relashionship. I'm actually part of the very small amount of people who doesn't actually hate Ashley even though I admit she's far from being the most lovable female in the franchise. But I'm pretty sure you can enjoy reading this even though you don't like her. The game showed their interactions in a very cold and impersonal way but the way I see it, there certainly was some kind of bond that formed between them at some point and I had a lot of fun exploring this relashionship, especially from Ashley's point of view, as she's fangirling all over Leon like we all do. _

_Small warning here for violence, though nothing too graphic. If it's the kind of thing that freaks you out, you shouldn't even be playing Resident Evil to begin with O_o_

_I do not own Resident Evil. Capcom does. Lucky bastards._

_If you've bothered to read all this, then congratulations and on with the story!_

OOOOOOOOOO

Leon advanced with great caution, pushing the door gently with the tip of his fingers, holding his handgun in front of him, the small compact weapon preceding him as he stepped on the cold stone tiles of the room. With his experience, he knew better than to barge into a room without thinking about what may lay in wait for him.

All of his sense on high alert, his icy blue eyes darting in every corner of the room, the agent took a few steps, feet strategically placed one in front of the other, his finger resting on the trigger, ready for anything. His calm and steady advance showed nothing of his aprehensions, to be attacked by either one of these strange monks, abominable parasites or horrible mutants they had created through an odious procedure. His every move was calculated. The tension in his muscles was not from fear. Leon was ready to pounce at the first sign of danger and put a bullet in the skull of the first _ganado_ who dared to show itself to him.

The special agent searched the living-room sized area, with a round red carpet that partially covered the marble slabs. Huge paintings, candlesticks, statues and other decorations adorned the walls and the huge polished wooden tables. On the other side of the room, another door stood, awaiting to be opened. Apart from the flickering flames of the chandeliers, the main source of light came from the pale glow of the moon that succeeded in reaching the large window despite the dark clouds that sought to stifle it.

At first glance, the place seemed deserted. Leon lowered his gun but kept it firmly in his grip, ready to use. Taking a quick glance over his shoulder, he made a stiff gesture with his hand.

"Follow me."

Light steps could be heard following his command and a young girl made her entrance into the room. Once again, it was time for the ritual they rehearsed every time they entered an unknown area. Ashley knew what she had to do without the need for guidance. First, she closed the door behind her and then took a few steps to stop in the middle of the room, wating patiently for Leon to finish his inspection.

The agent was checking every corner, every nook and cranny, behind furniture and outside the large window to make sure nothing could catch them unaware. Just yesterday, Ashley would have took his meticulousness for paranoia but right now, found herself much more appreciative of his care. It didn't happen often, but on a few occasions had a well concealed creature manage to sneak up on them while they were resting. Leon wasn't taking chances anymore.

A couple of minutes when by and Leon gave her a nod, declaring the room secure. Ashley could finally start to breathe normally as the tension in her shoulders receded.

"You need to take a break?" Leon asked gently.

At first, Ashley had refused to take breaks even though her feet were killing her, even though she was out of breath and had sweat covering every inch of her body. She might have been a kidnapped girl but she still had her pride. No way she was going to let herslef be seen as a weakling or a hindrance by the government agent. After each of her refusals, he would merely raise an eyebrow and march on (Ashley swore she saw a smirk discreetly emerging on his naturally stoic features before he turned around once). After six hours of waddling through bogs, mud and dead leaves though, Ashley had no other choice but to swallow her pride and ask for him to slow down or stop from time to time. Her protector would then search for a safe spot, a cabin, a barn or an abandoned house where she could sit to catch her breath while he positionned himself strategically to survey their surroundings like a sentinel.

Ashley couldn't help but be in awe at her savior. With the exceptions of a few swears from time to time, he never complained about the harsh conditions he had to work in and never seemed to tire. His breathing was always slow and quiet and Ashley knew that, were it not from her, he could have crossed the entire village within a few minutes. It was no surprise that her father had sent one of his best agents to her rescue, but Ashley admired his strenght and resilience as well as his even temper and calmness. Since the beginning of their partnership, he accepted her whims, her complaining and her burts of anger and despair without a word. She couldn't help it; she couldn't help behaving like a princess, like the spoiled brat she was. The patience Leon showed her always made her feel guilty afterwards; something that never happened before. Besides, after having faced so many dangers together, Ashley hopefully believed that a certain bond of trust, complicity, and dare she say, friendship had formed between them, even more so now that they knew they both had a dangerous parasite growing inside of them.

Leon could easily have left her behind to save his own hide but even though she knew he never would, the danger they were both in because of it ensured that he couldn't simply look at the situation like any other mission that was given to him by his boss. He was in as much trouble as she was; he might also die or worse, end up becoming a puppet to this sinister Osmund Saddler. At times, Ashley found herelf wishing she could read his impassive face and find out how he could cope with this reality without panicking. For the young blonde woman, the single though of having a disgusting insect coming straight out of a horror movie wriggling between her ribs, gradually taking control of her body made her shiver in disgust and fear. She imagined herself standing in the middle of a horde of villagers, reduced to a primitive state of savagery until her head burst and was replaced by a viscious tentacle monster.

Ashley shook her head in an effort to clear out the gruesome images from her mind. In a life or death situation, she had quickly realised there was no point in pondering on all the things that could go wrong. She had to stay focused or her survival.

Ashley sat on the fancy sofa resting near the window. It was dusty but otherwise seemed much cleaner than all they had come across in the village. And the generous padding provided the most comfortable surface on which she had the opportunity to sit on for a while. The president's daughter even allowed herself to lean back and fold her legs against her body. She was cold, hungry and tired, but at least she was alive. Naturally, designer boots, a short skirt and a sleeveless woolen shirt was not the ideal outfit for the kind of environment she was in, but she had no idea, the morning she put them on, that she would be kidnapped by fanatics and be taken halfway across the world to a remote corner of Spain.

The president's daughter took off her boots and began massaging her sore feet through her now dirty socks. She couldn't bring herself to bare her feet in front of Leon for some reason. In his presence she was shier than she ever was and she didn't know why.

Said agent went to sit against a wall on the opposite side of the room, at a respectful distance from her, in a spot where he could keep an eye on both doors easily. He let out a long weary sigh, leaning his sand colored head against the wall. Ashley noted that he was still holding his handgun. Though it was hard to tell by simply watching from afar, she suspected he was also tired. She had no idea how long he had been looking for her but since he had found her, he had neither slept or eaten and his only rest was limited to a couple of minutes sitting down after which he would urge her to leave, unwilling to linger in a potentially dangerous place for longer than necessary.

He was definetly not the most talkative man she had the opportunity to meet but Ashley was grateful for the company he was providing. He would cheer her up and give her hope when she needed it. In the silence that had now settled between them, they both had the time to loose themselves in their respective thoughts.

Ashley thought of her father, of her mother; about how much she wished she could see them again and how she wished for this nightmare to be over. She though about what she would do once she got back home. Take a hot bath and eat a huge meal. Then she would go shopping and spend all of her allowances on new clothes and shoes. She pictured in her head the moment she would be reunited with her family. The moment she would part ways with Leon...

The girl stole a furtive glance at her bodyguard. He seemed deep in thought, his eyes staring at nothing in particular. She found herself wondering what he might be thinking about.

When he unexpecedly stormed into her cell to rescue her, Ashley had initially though he was another one of those savages and had tried to run away from him. When he told her he had been sent by her father to save her, she could have bursted from joy and relief. At first, Leon had been nothing more than one of the many agents working for her father, but the moment she saw him chase after her and a man who had attempted to steal her away again, slashing through a crowd of angry villagers, never giving up, she started to see him in a different perspective. She reminisced how he fought valiantly against two chainsaw wielding madwomen while she hid in a metal bin from which she could see him risking his life through a small hole. Ashley wished she had the skill and knowledge to come to his aid. But she, who was born in a golden cradle, could do little more than try not to get in his way and stay out of trouble. Therefore, she blindly obeyed all his commands: wait, follow, hide, run, stay close and duck when I have to shoot near you.

The president's daughter could at least take pride in her job to watch his back when his attention was elsewhere. She had warned him a couple of times of an impending attack when an ennemy tried to sneak up from behind him. While she hadn't necessarly saved his life, she certainly did spare him some painful injuries. She had managed to escape so far with only a few scratches and bruises. As for him, he suffered several blows and deep gashes and cuts from the farming tools the villagers used against him. Most of these injuries, he already had when they first met. She especially noticed an angry red mark on his neck (which came out even worse when they reunited outside of the flaming slaughterhouse) where someone of something probably tried to strangle him but she never dared to ask where it came from.

Ashley wondered what he was like while not on a mission. Her twenty years old female self had quickly noticed the attractive physique of her bodyguard. With his thight grey shirt which showed his powerful and agile muscles that she had seen at work multiple times, leaving little to imagination. Most of the time, as she followed his every steps, she saw his back, perfect with a gentle concave curve at the bottom. His short sleeves let her see his battle hardened arms freely. The best thing was his chiseled chest; his large pecs and his proud six pack that could make any girl drool. And all that without mentioning his adorable face, with his well drawn but undeniably masculine traits, his clean-shaven chin, his straight nose and his piercing blue eues. Ashley also loved his hair; simple and straight with his dirty blonde locks partially hiding his face, giving him a mysterious yet boyish look. She wondered how old he actually was, though she doubted he was much older than herself. Regardless, there was no doubt in her mind that Leon was tremendously appealing. Did he have a girlfriend?

"Leon?" she called out, breaking the silence. The man turned his head towards her, eyebrows raised. Ashley overcame her shyness and carried on. "How old are you?"  
Leon did not hide the surprise and mild amusement that made their way on his face. "27 years old." he replied without protest.  
Ashley was glad that for his compliance to answer even though he kept his words to the minimum. So, her protector was almost seven years her senior. Not too bad ... Her own father was ten years older than her mother.

Ashley carried on with her questions before an uncomfortable silence settled. "How long have you been doing this job?" She was talking much too fast and had a hard time meeting his gaze. He undeniably had a huge impact on her, unbeknown to him. She blushed and stammered like a love-stricken teenage girl in his presence.  
"About five years. Give or take." he answered simply once more.  
"So this is not your first time flying to the other side of the world to rescue someone?" Ashley asked, her curiosity now surpassing her shyness. Leon paused, thinking for a moment.  
"This is not the first time that I have to escort someone on a mission." he said, thinking of Manuela, the girl he met during one of his first missions in South America. "But this is the first time that this is what my whole mission is about." he then finished.

She had guessed Leon was a very secretive person and based on what she could see, she was not mistaken. Although he did not flat out refuse to answer her questions, he did not add up more detail than necessary. He did not talk much about himself. Still, Ashley did not give up the idea of unraveling the mystery that surrounded him, but she was afraid that if her questions got too personal, he would refuses to answer questions definitively. _Do you have a girlfriend?_

Ashley barely had time to open her mouth to ask another question when a loud thud resonated on the other side of the door. Instantly, Leon was on his feet and pointed his handgun towards the source of the sound. Again, he went in "agent" mode, his eyebrows furrowed in displeasure.

"Ashley, hide!" he ordered, scowling at the door.

The young woman obeyed and went to take shelter behind the sofa for lack of a better option. It didn't take long for the door to burst open to make way for a black-clad zealot and his unsteady gait. Leon, who had been patiently waiting like a cat stalking its prey, instantly seized the opportunity and lodged a bullet in his brain. Other monks followed suit, scattering across the room rather that staying in a compact mass which would leave them vulnerable for a grenade lauch. Leon didn't lose his cool and patiently shot them one by one, making whichever came the closest to Ashley or himself a priority. They both though he had a good grasp on the situation until he saw three new zealots enter, each armed with a heavy wooden shield planted with rusty nails, opening the way for yet other ennemies. Ashley saw the frown of displeasure on Leon's face intensify.

Thoroughly annoyed, he drew his riot gun, aiming for the heart of the clustered monks. The powerful weapon spat its shots on the shield, demolishing it in the blink of an eye and injuring the monk hiding behind. Without delay, Leon shot again and again until all the zealots had collapsed on the ground, vulnerable, giving him a short moment to reload.

It didn't take more than a split second of distraction. The agent saw it from the corner of his eye as he was in the process of poiting his mighty double barrel towards the threat again but he wasn't quick enough. A monk armed with a crossbow staring at him with a triumphant smirk. A bolt was shot and, at the speed of light, buried itself deep in Leon's chest, tearing a cry of pain from the depths of his throat.

Ashley couldn't hold back the cry of terror that pushed past her lips when she saw her savior take several steps back because of the force of the impact, breathless and struggling to remain on his two feet. A chill of terror ran up her spine. From where she was standing, the bolt seemed to be embed right through his heart. Torn between the desire to help him and the necessity to stay hidden, she watched him stagger his hand instinctively brought to his injury. He hunched down on one knee. The female couldn't see his face, hidden behind his pale locks yet she clearly saw the blood running down his hand, weakly holding the bolt piercing his skin.

Leon dropped his riot gun on the floor and took his personal handgun with a destabilized grip, shooting blindly in the general direction of the attacker in the hope that at least one of the bullets would hit its mark. As his vision started going in and out of focus, he kept shooting until the magazine emptied after which Ashley saw him drop to the floor, still holding the bolt in his chest and back up until he could sit against a wall. A silence as thick as concrete fell. The danger was gone, for now.

Ashley jumped out of her hiding place and rushed to her savior who lay eerily still on the stone floor.

"Leon, are you okay!?" she panicked, kneeling next to him.

She shuddered at the sight of the blood seeping in between his clenched fingers. The bolt had not pierced through his heart as she had feared but was embed a few inches below his left collarbone. Ashley couldn't know just how deep the bolt had entered. Tears started to fill her caramel colored eyes when she saw his face contort with pain. What would happen if he didn't survive?

"Leon! Leon, what do I do!?" she cried, terrified of his lack of answer and the thought of being left on her own in the dark castle.

She heard him take a wheezing breath between his clenched teeth and then saw him lay his icy blue eyes on her. His expression was soft but she could see he was making a big effort not to let the seriousness of the situation show through his pained eyes.

"I'm okay... it's going to be okay, Ashley. Don't worry about me." he tried to reassure her. His face twitched again as he felt his pulse pushing against the bolt. Blood was running down his hand and arm, staining his shirt.  
"Leon, you can't stay like this! We need to fix you right now!" Ashley nearly shouted, feeling the panick rise in her chest.

Ashley suddenly stopped moving when she felt a hand take hers in a firm but gentle grip. She then noticed the strangely serene look her bodyguard lay on her, silently asking her to calm down. The president's daughter calmed down instantly, giving him her attention.

"Everything will be okay, Ashley. We'll both make it through this but I need you to calm down and do as I say, okay?" He didn't speak in his usual dry and impersonal tone. His voice was gentle and quiet, to reassure her. She could have laughed at the irony of the situation had it not been so dreadfully serious; he was the one lying in a pool of his own blood and she was the one needing to be comforted. The young woman nodded and anxiously awaited his instructions. Leon took in a painful breath and began:

"First, this needs to come out." he said, gesturing to the offending bolt buried in his shoulder with his good hand. "I'll take care of this part." he added quickly upon seeing the horrified expression on the woman's face.  
"Won't you bleed out?" Ashley asked worriedly.

Leon explained that under normal circumstances, it would be better to leave the bolt where it was to prevent the bleeding from getting worse, but that in their current situation, where he didn't have access to extensive medical care and would more than likely have to fight for his life a couple more times, leaving the thin metal rod embed in his shoulder was not an option.

"Before I go through with it, look into my attache case." Ashley immediatly obeyed his command. "You should find disinfectant, bandages and a vial of green herbs. "  
Trying her best to settle the trembling of her fingers, Ashley fetched the required items from the briefcase. Beside her, Leon was breathing sharply, trying to ignore the sharp pain in his shoulder. They needed to act quickly; he was loosing a lot of blood. The president's daughter glanced at him, waiting for his next instructions.

"First, I'm going to remove the bolt. It's probably gonna bleed a lot. You'll need to hurry and remove my shirt to put pressure of the wound. Then you'll have to apply the herb concoction to the wound. All of it. Then, use the disinfectant and finally bandage it up. This is the best we can do in our current situation. "

Ashley listened to his instructions, hoping that her nervousness wouldn't cause her to slip and hurt him even further. She did not want to risk it but she could'nt leave him like that. The two stared at eachother for a moment.

"You can do it, Ashley. I know you can." he said with dismarming honesty.  
"O-okay." she nodded.  
"Ready?"

Leon straightened himself and grabbed the bolt firmly with his right hand, wincing at the excruciating pain. Without giving himself the time to hesitate he yanked with all his might on the metal projectile until the sharp triangular head tore out of his muscle tissue. He uttered a heart wrenching howl, his entire body jolting under the immediate effect of the suffering. With nothing to retain it, a small stream of blood spurted from the open wound, startling his protegee. He threw the bolt angrily to the other side of the room. It was time for Ashley to act.

She hurriedly started to remove his blood stained shirt as he did his best to position himself to facililtate the task. She then let the bothersome piece of farbic fall to her knees. Leon groaned in intense pain, his usually serene face contorted in agony. He let himself slump against the wall, breathing hard. Ashley now had a clear view of his injury. Somehow similar to a bullet wound, the hole was deep and bleeding profusely. Despite her growing unease, Ashley applied pressure around it with both hands. Leon growled, fighting off the instinct of pushing her away and biting his hand to keep from screaming which might attrack even more ennemies while he was dreadfully vulnerable. His forehead was drenched in sweat and his eyes were clenched shut.

Keeping a hand firmly pressed against the wound, Ashley grabbed the small vial containing the mysterious green sticky substance. She had seen Leon use it several times. It was simple concoction made of a very plain-looking plant that grew almost everywhere, like a common weed. Leon once explained to her that the herb was effective in preventing infections, relieve pain and speed up the healing process. Its effects increased with the quantity of herb used and especially if it was mixed with another similar plant, albeit much more uncommon, with distinctive red leaves. Unfortunately, the best they had a the moment was a combination of two green herbs.

Ashley poured a small amount of the thick substance on the tip of her finger and, without relieving the pressure around the male's injury, applied it generously in and around the edges of the wound. Leon told her to use it all and that's what she did, not stopping even though her bodyguard grimaced, even though he was biting his hand so hard he would eventually break it, even though he was sweating like he was about to melt. After what seemed like an eternity, the vial was empty and the green substance had completely filled the hole in Leon's shoulder, stopping the bleeding. Ashley then grabbed the disinfectant, pouring it on a small piece of sterile cloth she had found in his attache case and placing it on the torn flesh. Leon seemed to relax somewhat slightly and opened his eyes, though his gaze was not fixed on her.

At last, the young woman took the roll of bandages and began to cover the whole thing with several layers of the white fabric. A little knot at the end and their ordeal was finally over.

Leon signed audibly and his eyes closed softly. For a brief moment, she though he fell unconscious but then he opened them again and looked at her. Ashley stared back at him, her hands bloody, holding her breath, afraid he would spontaneously die right in front of her. Leon gave her a weak smile barely hiding the suffering he was enduring, but sincere nonetheless.

"You did it, Ashley." he whispered.

She had to resist the urge to hug him like a teddy bear for fear of hurting him and offered him a toothy smile instead. She was proud of what she had accomplished. Finally, she didn't feel like such a burden anymore.

"You need to rest." she said.

After the small crisis they had experienced together, any discomfort in Ashley was gone, replaced instead by a strange desire to protect him. Almost like a maternal instinct. Ashley smiled again upon seeing the confused and incredulous expression on her bodyguard's face. She finally broke through his impassible and collected outer shell.

"We'd better move before any more of them comes." he protested.  
"Oh no! You can't run around being a hero while you're injured like that! You can afford to rest a bit. I'll stand watch. "

Leon was so baffled by her uncharacteristic authority that he couldn't even find the words to protest further. Apparently, the president's daughter had a scolding mother side niether of them was aware of. Ashley carefully helped him stand and guided him to the sofa where she sat him gently. She then threw a glance at him, as if daring him to try and get up again and then turned around to recover his fallen riot gun, placing it on the coffee table, well in reach and ready to use. She then retrieved his soaked shirt and hung it somewhere to dry, wishing she could do something to clean it. Leon watched her fussing left and right without uttering a word. Ashley dragged the zealot's corpses and discarded them outside of the room, placing a chair against the now closed door, blocking further access to their location. She did so too with the other door then turned to Leon, who was still watching.

"See? Nothing's gonna happen to us. Now stop worrying and rest."

The dirty blonde agent was silent for a couple seconds, pondering if it were safe for him to close his eyes after his own negligence earned him a serious injury moments ago. _I can't go around fighting again so soon with this wound_, he reasoned. He might have been right-handed but the shock every fired bullet would send through his body would be very painful, especially if he used his trusty riot gun, and might worsen the injury. _I guess if both doors are blocked, I can rest for a while... _After all, the mixture of two green herbs would greatly accelerate his recovery. In just a couple of hours, the wound will have closed and there would be nothing but another scar left behind.

Leon smiled at Ashley in defeat. He agreed to settle more comfortably on the velvet couch and rested his head on the back, closing his eyes for the first time in forever.

"An hour and that's it." he warned.

Satisfied, Ashley sat quietly beside him, snuggling against the armrest, attentive to any suspicious sound or sight and stealing a glance at his bare chest from time to time. After a moment, she heard the slow, steady breathing of Leon beside her. Finally, he was actually resting for a change.

OOOOOOOOOO

_Reviews and constructive criticism would be most appreciated! I hope you enjoyed the story. I'll be posting a (very big) LeonAda oneshot soon, again in both French and English so stay tuned! _


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